


Run!

by DontMindMeDear (JustANerd)



Series: Tenses&Senses [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Hinata is one of his servants, Kageyama is a member of royalty, M/M, Minor Character Death, Noya being a good Senpai, Off-screen Deaths, Running Away, Unreliable Narrator, but also humour, carpets are the ultimate weapons against magic, escape routes, fire mage Noya, hand holding, just to warn you: the rating and warnings will change, lots of running away, mostly angst, suffocation warning, wind mage Hinata
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-19
Updated: 2016-05-20
Packaged: 2018-06-09 09:41:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,916
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6900796
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustANerd/pseuds/DontMindMeDear
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tobio is the only son and heir to the Royal Family of Kageyama. Not that it really matters anyway. Not in their current Time. They live in peace with the other Royal Families and have good relations with the citizens of their City. So there really isn't any need for Tobio to learn how to use his magic to fight, yet. After all, he's only 16 years old. A boy at his age should learn other things. That's what most of his teachers, and even his parents, think at least.</p><p>Too bad this turns out to be one of their greatest mistakes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Escape Route

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys!  
> This is the first of my works I'm publishing, so please be nice to me~!  
> This is just the beginning of a trip that was never meant to happen. But now it happened anyway.  
> I'm sorry for everything that's gonna follow this one.
> 
> Also, I suck at choosing titles, so if anyone of you has a better idea, please tell me!
> 
> Also, I'm a bit busy with University right now and since I tend to write/update much at once it might take like 2 weeks (maybe more?) for me to update. Sorry about that.
> 
> Hope you'll enjoy the ride~!

The muffled sound of hurried footsteps on carpet echoed in the mostly empty hallway. He passed by countless closed and opened doors, ignored several branching corridors of various sizes, ignored the other personnel's confused gazes, ignored the scoldings of his superiors for running way too fast and without caution. Ignoring everything around him, he just kept running without the slightest hesitation. He had lived in the giant mansion for long enough that he could find his way through the labyrinth of branching corridors and hallways even with closed eyes. At least he assumed it. He had never tried it before, but he was pretty confident he could do it. Not that he had the time to test it now. He had a goal and he needed to reach it before anyone else could.

After turning around a seemingly random corner, his eyes fell on a simple looking door at the end of the small corridor and he sped up once more. He reached out to his magic without a second thought, but not the slightest breath of wind answered his call. A low growl broke free from his tightly closed mouth. _Still not good, huh?_

 

Kageyama heard the approaching steps way before they were even close enough to reach the door to his study room. It took him a bit to recognize them though and a frown settled on his face. The interval between the steps was different than usual and muffled from walking on the carpet. He never used the carpet. In fact, usually he would avoid it at all cost. Apparently because it slows him down, but Kageyama wasn’t sure if that truly was his only reason.

Hearing the smaller one using the carpet was weird enough as it is, but there was one thing that was even weirder:  
The usual vibe of the other's always perceptible wind magic was missing as well.

He stood up from his desk where he had done his homework in 'history of magic' and went to open the door, happy that he had a reason to stop doing his homework, unsettled by the other's unusual behavior.

He was still in the middle of his room when the door flew open and crashed into the wall with a loud bang. Kageyama flinched and his frown turned into a scowl. “Dumbass! What do you think you are doing!? You didn't even knock li-”

“Shut up! We don't have time for that now!” Kageyama stared wide-eyed at the orange-haired boy who took his hand and hurriedly pulled him out of the room. It wasn't unusual for the smaller boy to interrupt him or shout at him. Not reacting to the insult though was very unusual. Too shocked and confused about what's going on, Kageyama followed his lead without asking any questions or hesitation. It was only when they reached the hallway and Hinata led him into the opposite direction from where he came, still only walking on carpet, when he regained his ability to speak.

"Hinata, what's going on?”

“Shh! Don't talk! They might hear us!”

“They?” Hinata only gave him an unusual stern look and Kageyama shut his mouth, not daring to ask anymore. He followed the other's lead silently. They passed a grand variety of doors and corridors, turned around the corner of a few others, went down a hidden staircase and turned towards the direction of the servants' quarters. Always walking on carpet. That was when Kageyama finally realized that Hinata was leading them to one of the ancient building's secret escape routes. Or rather, a very specific one: It was the only one that was covered almost completely by carpet.

His confusion turned into nervousness and fear. Cold sweat trickled down his neck as he tightened his grip on Hinata's hand. Hinata slightly turned his head in the taller boy's direction and almost stumbled, when he saw the look in his eyes. Kageyama's unspoken question was answered by a grim nod.

The carpeted escape was the most well hidden one within the mansion and was only used in absolute emergencies. Even Hinata, who would often be scolded for accidentally breaking the rules, followed that one. When everything seemed to turn against them and their only option was to flee, when all fighting was useless and the other escape routes were either found or blocked, this route was their only hope. The meaning behind Hinata's actions and the reasons for his abnormal behavior were obvious now:

It meant that they were being attacked. And the enemies were strong enough that Tobio’s father feared he would not be able to protect his only son and Heir.

 

Kageyama had never been on the escape route before. Which wasn't really surprising considering they were living in relative peaceful times. Or rather, they were supposed to be. No one but the concerned personnel was allowed to enter the tunnel. So when the door closed behind them and the darkness engulfed them, when the carpet covering the ground and walls muffled all sounds, he felt lost. He considered to use his magic to reach out for any signs of people who would follow them, but the chance of them detecting his own magic and following it back to its source, him, was too high. Not even Hinata was using his magic like he usually did. A slight chill ran up his spine and he pulled the collar of his light indoor jacket a bit closer around his neck. He wasn't even close to being suitably dressed for this occasion. Not in the slightest.

They weren't running anymore. Not since they entered the tunnel and got their ability to see taken from them. The chance of accidentally running against one of the walls or stumbling over their own feet was too high. It didn't take too long for them to lose all feeling for time and space. No one of their current generation, not even the concerned personnel, knew how long the tunnel stretched. Even those who knew where its exit was could tell how long it truly was since there were several turning points. When they weren't careful, they could even miss an important branch tunnel and instead end up in a dead-end. There were several of those “traps” inside the tunnels.

His left hand was touching the wall on its side, just like Hinata had instructed, while Hinata's right hand followed the other wall. They were still holding hands, but since the tunnel was a bit too cramped to walk next to each other, he was walking behind the smaller one. There wasn't that much room to move and though he couldn't see or feel it, he was pretty sure the ceiling was right above his head. For a moment he considered to jump and see if he hit his head, but that would make him look stupid. He didn't want to look stupid. Especially not in front of Hinata. Then he considered making Hinata jump and see if he hit it. But considering he was dependent on the other's ability to walk on his own and he couldn't see him anyway that probably wouldn't be a very reliable experiment.

Suddenly the orange-haired boy tugged at his hand, throwing him out of his thoughts, and pulled him into a branch tunnel. It was even smaller than the previous one. He started to feel a bit claustrophobic and held tight onto Hinata's hand. The knowledge that he wasn't alone down here if the ceiling and tunnels were to collapse calmed him only slightly. 

“Don't worry.” Hinata's sudden voice startled Kageyama. He flinched and let go of a surprised shriek, which turned into a whine as his head hit the ceiling. He knew he had been right about the ceiling's height. Not that it really mattered anymore. The other's badly covered laughter was far more important to him now. “What are you doing?!”

“Shut up, Dumbass! You startled me! I thought we weren't supposed to speak?” Hinata's laughter subsided to a chuckle, but it was still pretty obvious he had a hard time collecting himself. Kageyama glared darkly at him from where he was crouching at the ground and Hinata's chuckle died down instantly. Apparently he could tell when Kageyama was glaring at him even without being able to see it. Good.

“I'm sorry, okay?! I really am! I didn't mean to startle you!” he shrieked defiantly.

“Then why did you speak in the first place?!” Kageyama responded still glaring furiously.

“Because it started to hurt!” a small whine entered his voice and suddenly Kageyama was very confused.

“...What?” The glare was gone and instead an expression of pure confusion was on his face as Hinata tried to stammer some kind of answer that he didn't understand. “Stop your stuttering and get to the point. We don't have all day! What's it that hurt?”

“Your hand ... Your grip on my hand ... it hurt. It was too tight.” It was still pretty obvious that he had a hard time collecting himself, but Kageyama didn't really mind anymore.

“Oh ... Sorry.” In this moment both of them were suddenly really glad for the absolute darkness.

Silence engulfed them for a while. Kageyama was still sitting on the ground and was just considering to stand back up, when Hinata unexpectedly let go of a very annoyed shout. Kageyama, who let go of another startled shriek, was suddenly very happy that he was still sitting on the ground. “Hinata!!!”

“I'm Sorry!”

Kageyama sighed in annoyance. He stood up slowly, one hand at a wall for balance, and threw another glare at Hinata. “What is it this time?” It was definitely not his hand.

“I'm sorry, but ... can you use your magic?”

Kageyama stared at one point in the darkness where he assumed Hinata's head to be. He stared and stared, trying to understand why he would ask that. He failed. “...What?”

“Your magic! Can you use it?” Annoyance colored the other's voice and Kageyama realized that he was actually really serious about it.

“Yes, I can. But why would you”

“Great! Then use it to check out the tunnel in front of us.” Kageyama bit back an annoyed remark for being interrupted and treated like a servant and sent out careful waves of his own wind magic instead. He made sure to keep his wind away from the openings in the ceiling, that added the necessary air to the tunnels, and concentrated on sending it further into the tunnel in front of them.

“... What should I search for?” He asked after a while. He had assumed he would find what Hinata wanted to know when he was just careful enough with his magic, but considering how long he was already searching without success he came to the conclusion it might be better to ask after all.

“Search for signs of other people. Especially fire mages.” Hinata explained calmly.

“Why fire?”

“Noya-san said he would meet us at a tunnel entrance that breaches from this one.”

“Noya did?!” For a moment Kageyama was so shocked he lost control of his magic, turning the soft breath strong enough to push the smaller boy from his feet. Hinata let out a yelp as he fell and a satisfied grin spread on the black-haired's face.

“What are you doing Bakageyama?!?”

“Sorry. You startled me.” Hinata grumbled something about spoiled and rich brat, but stopped when Kageyama glared at him. Satisfied he concentrated back on his task. The carpeted escape room was under the care of only the most trustworthiest members of their household. The whole household knew though, that it was as magic proof as possible and that the usage of magic to find their way would tire most people out enough to make them collapse halfway. If Noya was the one who instructed Hinata, though, then everything made much more sense. As one of the few people who were entrusted with the up-keeping of the tunnel, Noya knew his way around here and would have been able to tell Hinata how to find his way and where to go.

The route itself went underground, but there where small “openings” in the ceiling that were covered by the above floor's carpet. The carpet was thick enough to not make the openings completely obvious to any Wind mage next to them, but it was still enough to let air through to breath normally. But even if they were to find the escape route, the covered floor and walls would cover the sounds well enough to give the mage a false impression for the space. It's similar for fire mages who rely on the body heat to find someone. But if there is carpet, then the carpet-protected openings prevent warmth from leaving the tunnels and the general temperature of the air will be similar to that of the humans inside the route. This heat prevented the collection of water and even if a mage could draw enough water from the air to use it properly, most of it would be absorbed by the carpet, which restricted its movement, speed and control. The worst was for earth mages though. Since they rely on soil or stone to find someone, they turn completely blind and helpless in front of the carpeted area. The only ones who could be of advantage there would be lightning or shadow mages. But lightning mages tend to lose control of their abilities when confronted with too many sources for their electricity at once and might end up electrocuting their own comrades. Shadow mages weren't really of any use either, since everything in the tunnel was pitch-black. They were able to find anyone within it, but without a light source they couldn't attack. For light mages it was even worse.

Kageyama thought about this for a moment before he spoke up once more. “Why did you ask me to search for Noya? Why didn't you do it yourself?” Silence answered his question. He scowled, but kept his concentration on his magic. If something like before was to happen again...

After a while he heard Hinata getting up from where he had fallen before. Kageyama could feel his gaze on him as he brushed of his clothes, but he didn't allow his concentration to waver. “... I asked you, because I can't.”

Kageyama blinked confused and turned his head into Hinata's direction. He allowed some of his concentration to focus on Hinata, while his main focus remained on his magic. “What do you mean you can't? Are you telling me you trained too much yesterday and now you are out of steam?”

“No! that's NOT what I meant! I meant that I CANNOT use it!”

“... Huh?” Kageyama failed to comprehend what he meant. Mages like Hinata and him were born as those. Most of them could use their magic ever since early childhood. There was not a single moment in Kageyama's life where he had NOT been able to use his magic. Even when someone couldn't control his powers well, like Hinata did at first, they were still able to USE them. As such he failed to understand what Hinata meant.

Hinata shrieked in annoyance. “I mean that I cannot feel it! My Magic! I cannot feel it. It's gone!”

“HAH?!” He was pretty sure Hinata was making fun of him now.

“Gargh! Stop looking at me like that! I'm not lying! It's true! It happened when I saw these suspicious people in these creepy cloaks coming out of the forest while I was outside with Izuki. We were helping granny and a few others to-”

“Doesn't matter. Back to the point.”

“Argh! Fine! We were staring at them for a while and I thought I caught sight of some sparks at one person's hands. So at one moment I was preparing my magic to attack them, or to protect Granny if necessary, and in the next it was GONE! I cannot even feel it anymore! It's just ... whenever I try to reach out for it like I usually do, there is nothing that answers me! Only empty air!”

Kageyama stared at him once more. This time not out of confusion, but because of shock. His magic had stopped somewhere in the middle of Hinata's explanation. He remembered how weird it was for Hinata to come running for him without any use of magic and how he missed to catch the smallest hint of his magic. If the circumstances were different he might have thought it was a stupid joke. But since they were in the middle of a very secret escape route, searching for another person's magic instead of lying low, he didn't think that was the case. His expression turned grim and determined as he picked up his magic to search for Noya once again. “When did Noya tell you to get me?”

“Soon after. All of us ran back inside where I almost instantly ran into him. He told me to get you and where we should meet him, then he was gone, preparing to stop whoever it was that attacked with the other guards.”

“So Noya stayed behind to fight while you came to pick me up?”

“Yes!”

“...Why are you so sure he would be able to meet us inside the tunnel, when he is supposed to be fighting with the others?”

“Because he said so. Noya always fulfills his promises.” There was no hesitation, no disbelief or doubt in his words. Only pure trust. Kageyama had to smile at the slightly older boy as pride filled his chest. He tried his best to suppress the other, the bad, feeling that made his stomach twist and turn.

“Good! Then take my hand and lets keep going! We don't want to get caught here because we were busy chatting! Also, I might have found Noya.”

 

A long time later, if Kageyama had to guess he would have said hours had passed, though it probably was barely one, they finally met Noya at the entrance to a branch tunnel. Or rather almost ran into him. It took Kageyama less than a second to notice that his bad feeling had become true:  
Noya had lost his magic as well. The usual warm, vivid vibe of his fire magic was gone.

“What took you guys so long? I have been waiting here for AGES without knowing whether you had made it or not!”

“I'm sorry Noya-san! It was Kageyama's fault! He suddenly started screeching in fear and wouldn't let go of my hand!”

“HUH?! WHAT ARE YOU SAYING DUMBASS?! You are the one who had grabbed my hand and-”

“OKAY! Enough with the quarreling! We don't have time for this! I don't know whether I have been followed and I sure hope you didn't try to check on followers yourselves and ended up attracting attention as well!” It wasn't really a question, but both of them shook their heads anyway. They remembered a moment later that he couldn't see them at all, but a satisfied chuckle told them that he did know somehow. “Good! Then let's go! I managed to take some of the horses with me when the others covered for me and I sure hope no one has caught sight of them yet. It's not far from here anymore till you are outside, so let's not waste any more time!” Instead of waiting for a response, he turned around and jogged towards the exit. Hinata and Kageyama almost stumbled over their feet and fell on each other as they hurriedly tried to follow him. It took all of their concentration to follow Noya without falling down. None of them had the time to check for any followers.

When reached the exit they all heaved a relieved sigh. The three horses that Noya managed to sneak out were still there. They hurriedly checked their surroundings for any indications that someone had been there in the meantime, but when none of them found evidence that indicated that this was indeed the case, they hurriedly mounted up and took off into the tree-covered hills.

After reaching a height from where they could see their old mansion they stopped. Kageyama almost didn't believe his eyes. The old mansion, the place he lived in since he was born, the place where his father and grandfather and all of his other ancestors were born and raised in, was nothing more than a pile of burning wood and stone. Thick clouds of dark-grey and black smoke reached high up into the sky, but Kageyama didn't really see where it went off to. He was too focused on his family's burning house. The place he used to call home was now nothing more but trash.

Anger burnt hot and thick in his veins like magma. He clenched his fists so tightly that he felt the reign cut into his flesh. Tears prickled in his eyes, but he clenched his teeth and forced them back. He refused to cry. Refused to give them the satisfaction that they had taken everything from him that he considered important to him. He didn't dare to think what might have happened to his mother or his father. Sudden movement at the base of the burning building caught his attention. He couldn't see it from all the way up there and the feeling of defeat rose in his throat. He snarled as he fought against the feeling, refused to back off, reluctant to give in. It was a stupid act of childish rebellion, he knew that, but that didn't stop him from calling his magic.

Wind magic danced around his fingers and the familiar tingling feeling filled him as he absorbed it and sent it towards his eyes. He closed them for a moment. When he opened them again he saw everything zoomed in. It took him a moment to orient himself, but then he fixed his gaze accordingly and pinpointed the source of the previous movement.

A person stood in front of the burning pile. He recognized short, black or dark brown hair, the orange flames seemed to warp the true color, and a lean figure. Hate filled his veins like hot poison and he felt sick at the thought that this person, the murderer of his parents and the destroyer of his home, was allowed to live on, enjoying the 'success' of their attack, allowed to follow whatever goal they had...

He didn't even realize he had collected magic in his hands, until he felt Noya's tight grip on his shoulder. “What the hell are you doing?!” Thrown out of his concentration, he let go of his magic which flew right towards the short-haired figure. A grim smile spread on his face as he watched his magic fulfilling his wish.

“IDIOT! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!” He felt Noya pull on his horse's reigns, turning them around and escaping with high-speed into the forest, following the trails into the mountain regions, far away from their old home. Far away from his parents' graves.

But it had already been too late.

Kageyama trembled in his saddle like a leaf. All color had left his face, cold sweat ran down his body. The moment before Noya had turned him around, the last moment before his sight turned back to normal, that person had turned around. And they had looked right into his eyes.

It wasn't an illusion or a mistake. No. That person had SEEN him. Kageyama had seen the smile on their face as they had turned around to face him. To face his attack. ... It was a trap. The person had been displaying themself intentionally to provoke him, to lead him into making a mistake. And he had stepped right into it. He knew his attack had failed. He hadn't seen it himself, but there wasn't any need to. The confident smile on their face was all the evidence Kageyama needed.

Now they knew where they were. Knew where they would try to run off to. They could try to hide, to obliterate their trail. But in the end it would only be a matter of time when they would be caught.

And it was his fault alone.


	2. Sacrifice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is, the 2nd part, just as promised!
> 
> Thanks to [All_My_Characters_Are_Dead](http://archiveofourown.org/users/All_My_Characters_Are_Dead) for Beta reading!! You really saved me!  
> (If there are still mistakes, then it’s my fault.)

“My feet hurt.” Kageyama couldn't agree with him more. “My legs hurt too. And my back. Even my eyes hurt. Actually, I think there isn't a single part of my body that does NOT hurt!” Kageyama wanted nothing more than to voice his agreement. The only thing that stopped him was his pride. However much he wanted to, making himself sound like a little spoiled brat and complain wasn't something his pride would ever allow him to do.

“Shut up. You're annoying.” He glared down at the smaller one who walked right next to him.

“But, Kageyamaaa!” Hinata let go of a long, pitiful whine and Kageyama, unsure of what to do, acted purely on instinct. “Ouch! I said I hurt! There's no need to make me hurt even more, you know?!”

“Whatever, just shut up! You are wailing like a baby and it makes my ears hurt.”

“I'M NOT A BABY!!!”

“THEN SHUT THE HELL UP!”

“HEY! If you two don't keep quiet, somebody will notice us!” Noya interrupted them. Both of them shut up instantly and turned to him with a pitiful, guilty look.

“I'm sorry,” they said in unison and bowed, before glancing at each other with a glare.

“That's only your fault!” Kageyama hissed. Hinata let go of a frustrated caw.

“It's not my fault, dumbass! You were the one who hit m-OUCH!”

“Who's the dumbass here, huh? Dumbass?!”

“HEY!”

“I'M SORRY!” They bowed once more in unison and Noya let go of a tired sigh. He knew it wouldn't be the last time today that they would end up quarreling. They were tired and hungry, worried about their friends and family they had to leave behind, grieving about the ones they couldn't protect, the ones they lost... Being on the run and having to sleep outside on the hard ground didn't really help either. He understood that very well. He felt the same. He felt more tired than he could have ever imagined. The only feeling that could compare to this was the tiredness of using up all of your magic, but that was more a mental kind of tiredness. It couldn't really be compared to this absolute exhaustion of his body, his sore muscles, the sheer endless hunger and thirst ... It didn't seem to matter how long he slept. It still wasn't enough. That is, if he managed to fall asleep at all. The worry that they might be found and attacked in their sleep was enough to keep him wide awake, despite knowing it was better to sleep and get some rest.

Lost in his thoughts he heard the two younger boys behind him quarreling again. He let go of another sigh and shook his head. For a moment he considered threatening them with going to sleep without dinner. But if he actually did that, then they would be even weaker in the morning. They needed all the strength they could get. So instead of using his restricted energy on interrupting them once more, he decided to go ahead and search for a place to spend the night at. If they were fed and could actually rest a bit, then they would calm down all on their own.

He used his magic to search the area for any unwanted attention or magical traps, trying to get a hint for other mage's energy. After finding none he nodded to himself satisfied and sped up, leaving the younger boys behind to quarrel about whatever topic they disagreed on now.

Shouyou's and Noya's magic had returned roughly after one day and the day after that they had felt other mages nearby. Afraid those might be persecutors, they released their horses, sending them into a different direction from their own, in the hope the other mages would follow the hoof prints, while they suppressed their own magic as good as they could. That was almost five days ago. They had neither felt nor seen any other mages since then, but that didn't really mean anything at this point.

Only once did they happen to stumble upon a town in the outskirts of the forest. They used the opportunity to buy supplies and stuff they needed to set up a camp. Hiding within the town seemed tempting, but it was rather small for a town and there weren't many other mages there either. If they were to cross paths with their persecutors while inside a town like that then it would be over with them. It was safer to hide within the forest until they reached their true goal: Karasuno City.

Karasuno was a rather big city in the north, with countless mages living and working there or simply travelling through. The sheer number of mages and the constant usage of magic made it impossible for anyone to detect and find someone.  
Far more important than this though was that the city's under the protection of several powerful mages, as well as one of the Royal Families. With the destruction of the Royal Family of Kageyama, it might be very possible that they'll be targeted as well. They were not just heading there to seek protection. They were also heading there to warn them.

In that sense they didn't really have anything to worry about. They knew where they wanted to go, no one was hurt, they had enough supplies, their travel speed wasn't bad, in the town they had made use of the chance that was given to them and exchanged their clothes to hide their real origin, they were once more capable of using their magic and they didn't detect any mages in their close vicinity since a few days ago now. Everything was under control. There really wasn't any need to worry about anything. Or rather, there wasn't supposed to be anything for them to worry about. Still, there was this one tiny problem:

“So? Where are we?” Hinata asked, looking honestly confused.

“How should I know?” Kageyama glared at him. He hated it when he was forced to admit his own weaknesses, but if he were to make something up, just to avoid admitting it, it would lead them into an even worse situation. He was forced to learn that a few days ago.

Unsatisfied with the answer Hinata turned away from him and towards the direction the older boy had gone. When he formed a funnel with his hands and held them in front of his mouth, Kageyama tried to stop him, but he was a moment too late. “Heeeey! Noya-Sa-Ouch!” 

“Shut up, Dumbass! They'll find us when we are too loud!”

“I dont think we have to worry about that.” Both of them yelped in surprise. They hadn't realized that Noya had come back to them from another direction than the one he had disappeared into. 

“Noya!” 

“Noya-San!” He grinned at them, amusement clearly written all over his face. 

“You two have been loud for a while now. If anyone dangerous was really around here, then they would have attacked us looong ago. But don't worry! Even if we are attacked, just count on me! I'll protect you!” He beams at them with a thumb directed at his proudly presented chest and his other hand on his hip. 

“Noya-saaaan!” Shouyou looked at the other with big, sparkly eyes, while Tobio blushed a bit and nodded rapidly, his eyes shining in admiration. Noya was very proud of himself for making their eyes shine like this and stuck out his chest a bit more, his smile growing even wider. Then he remembered why he had come back to them in the first place and deflated a bit.

“By the way, I have found a nice spot over there. It's in the curve of a river, right next to the forest and below a cliff that's leading further up into the mountains. It's very well-hidden, so I think we can even set up a campfire! We also only have to keep an eye on one direction!” he said while roughly pointing with his thumb over his shoulder, into the direction where he came from.

“Whooooaaaa!” Hinata's excitement made him jump 5 feet in the air. The moment he landed he pushed himself off and ran with wind magic supported high-speed in the direction Noya had indicated.

“OI! NO HEAD START DUMBASS!” Kageyama shouted as he followed him the same way. Noya ran behind them far slower.

“I told you guys to stop that!” He tried to sound convincing, but he was afraid his wide grin was noticeable even in his voice.

 

 

It was a short night for all of them, despite the relative safety of their camping spot. Like usual they kept watch in turns. First was Noya's watch, then Kageyama's followed by Hinata's and then Noya's again, who decided when it was time to take off again. Like usual Noya was unable to sleep during the other two's watch. He was too worried that someone would attack them in their sleep or that he wouldn't be able to wake up in time if they called for his help. It was similar to the two teens. None of them was willed to go to bed when Noya decided he would do the first watch and occasionally they would try to drag out their own watch to give him more rest. He appreciated their concern, but in his opinion it was far more important for the two teens to get their necessary rest than for an adult like Noya who had been trained for years how to protect others.

When they got up and broke down their camp though, Noya came to realize once more that telling them to sleep was something different than them actually sleeping. He watched them cautiously. He saw how Shouyou refilled their water bottles and almost fell into river, because he fell asleep, and also how the content of Tobio's backpack fell out, because he didn't close it right and actually strapped it on upside down.

Noya sighed heavily. If the rest of the day went like this then it would be a horrible, long day for him. He decided it was better to use the fastest way to the north: the way over the mountains. It was more tiresome to go that way than to keep on walking through the forest, but it was far harder to get lost and once they reached the summit everything would turn easier and they would reach their goal far sooner than if they took the forest route.

After he informed the others of his decision, he had a hard time covering his laughter as a cough. Shouyou looked at him as if he had just told him the world was going down today and Kageyama was scowling so hard that even the birds around them stopped chirping. Still, despite their obvious dislike to his decision, none of them voiced their complaints or showed doubts of his decision. A wave of tender pride and happiness washed over him at their deep trust in his abilities.

He turned around with a small jump and walked the cliff up with a spring in his step. Shouyou and Tobio following behind him far less motivated.

They had already been walking at the small space between the slowly retreating forest and the cliff, when they reached a part where the forest retreated far enough to give space for a widely open area. In one moment Noya smiled satisfied at himself, glad that they had put up their camp at the bottom of the cliff and not all the way up here where they could be seen and attacked from several sides, and in the next moment Tobio shouted a warning. A heart-beat later, he felt himself being yanked backwards by the collar of his shirt. He was about to complain when a sudden ball of fire flew by him, barely missing his nose.

Noya bit back his complaint and hurriedly positioned himself between the two teens and the two unfamiliar men exiting the forest. He called his own magic, allowing sparks to dance around his hands, as the newcomers stayed within the shadows of the forest. Fire swirled around their heads and Noya prepared himself to fight back as soon as they dared to attack again.

“Awww seems like you missed him. Maybe you should have trained some more afterall?”

“Shut up. I would have hit him if that kid wasn't from Royalty.” The first one chuckled at that, but didn't disagree with him.

Noya scowled at the way the two looked at Tobio. “Who are you? What do you want from us?” He growled at them. The two man turned their attention to Noya now. He wasn't sure whether he should've been glad they didn't stare at Tobio anymore or rather run away as fast as he could. Their gazes were harsh and piercing, without any hint of mercy. Those guys were out for blood and they wouldn't stop until they got it. His body tensed against his will.

“Sorry~! We cannot tell you who we are. Oikawa would get reeeaaally angry with us if we did.” The smaller one of them said and stuck his tongue out in an apologizing manner. Was that a tongue piercing?

“We can tell you though what we want from you.” the other one answered. Demonic eyes looked deep into his and it took all of Noya's self-control not to flinch back. These two were dangerous. Very dangerous. His whole body screamed at him to run away. But how could he run away if that meant Shouyou or Tobio could get hurt?  
The guy with the demonic eyes pointed towards Tobio with a very confidend and demanding manner that angered Noya. “We want him. Give him to us and we might spare your lives~.” From the edge of his sight Noya saw Tobio flinch and his face darkened considerably.

“HOW DARE YOU! KAGEYAMA'S NOT A THING YOU CAN TAKE WITH YOU WHEREVER AND WHENEVER YOU WANT! JUST GET LOST, DUMBASS, AND DON'T COME BACK, BEFORE WE KICK YOUR ASS!!!” Hinata screamed at them from behind Noya. He didn't tell him not to anger their enemies. How could he, when he was agreeing with him?

Their opponents stared at Shouyou for a long time, apparently too stunned to act. Then they slowly turned to face each other, before finally breaking into a fit of laughter.

“Have you heard that?! The shrimp wants to kick our asses!”

“That must be the best thing I've heard in WEEKS! Maybe it wasn't such a waste of time afterall to get stuck and lost in this goddamn forest.”

“You shouldn't underestimate us before you fought against us.” Their laughter died down at that and they looked at him in a very smug manner and Noya had to suppress the urge to punch it out of their faces.

“Oh! Look at that~! Seems like another shrimp wants to fight us.”

“In that case, let me fight him! I haven't had a good work out in AGES!”

“Fine, fine. But please don't burn him to ashes, ok? We don't wanna scare our young friends.” They grinned at each other for a moment. An instant later he attacked.

Fire was thrown Noya's way and he instantly grabbed his own fire magic. He threw his flames at the other's, with the intention to fuse them and to take control over both. But instead of mingling with each other, his fire seemed to fly right through and hit a tree which burst into flames. The other flames kept flying right towards him. He held one of his hands up to intercept the flames on contact, but ... it was useless. White heat ran through his veins, entering from the finger tips from his outstretched hand and right towards his chest and stomach, attacking his intestines. The white pain blinded him, tore his body apart, his muscles tensed and twitched uncontrollable, all off his senses were ripped from him, until he could do nothing more than to scream in pain.

Then the pain suddenly died down and he stared into empty space for a while, unable to comprehend what happened. When his head cleared enough that he could differentiate between his blurred sight and the dark spots dancing in front of him, he blinked rapidly. As his ability to see returned, he found himself kneeling on the hard ground. He tried to support himself with his arms, tried to get up, but his muscles merely twitched painfully at his pitiful attempt to control them. How was that possible? That had been nothing, but ordinary fire magic, so why was he not able to redirect it? Why did the pain go right into his body, instead of burning him from the outside?

He forced himself to raise his head and tried to get a proper look at their attackers, who had finally stepped out of the forest's shadows, despite the blur that still clouded his sight. One of them, the one who attacked him, was blonde and around Tobio's height. The other had wild, deep red, almost blood-like, hair and was taller. Both of them had their attention turned to the two boys, who were standing protectively in front of Noya now, with a wall of wind between them and their attackers.

No. This was wrong. He couldn't allow them to fight, couldn't allow them to get hurt or captured or ... killed. Tobio was the only one of his bloodline that was left. If he died, if his bloodline was eradicated for real ... 

Noya clenched his teeth and fists and forced his legs to act according to his commands. Somehow he succeeded. His legs were shaking badly, but he refused to back off, refused to let himself be protected by these two kids, refused to let anyone else get hurt or die under his protection.

“Shouyou. Tobio.” His voice was rough and it hurt to speak, making him wince the slightest bit. He waited a moment until they tilted their heads a little. Their main focus was still on their enemies, but at least they were listening to him. Good. “Listen carefully to me now and do exactly what I say. No complaining. No independent acting. Nothing that deviates from what I'm ordering you. Understood?” He saw them hesitating, saw the way their shoulders and hands tensed at his words. He knew they wouldn't like what he was about to tell them. And he knew they were aware of it as well.  
Still. Right now was not the time to act selfishly or brash. If they made a mistake now, then all of them would end up dead. “Promise me.”

He glanced quickly at their enemies, worried they would use this as a chance to attack them. He didn't expect to see them still standing at the forest's borderline, observing them curiously. Apparently they were more interested to see what they were about to do next than in their elimination. Good. That would give him the time he needed to act. He carefully concentrated fire magic into his fists and feet, slowly enough that it wouldn't create sparks or could be felt from the other side of the wind wall.

He turned his attention back to the two boys in front of him, who still looked indecisive. He had to wait three more heart-beats and a long exchange of glances, before they finally nodded. Noya took a deep breath, bracing himself. Then he whispered to them:  
“Shouyou. Put as much magic into your legs as you can, take Tobio and JUMP. Jump over the cliff as high and as far as you can. No, higher and farther than you've ever jumped before!” The two boys looked at him in shock and Noya used the time to give them further instructions. “Tobio. Use your wind magic to keep a protective wall behind the two of you. Don't let yourselves get hit! Then help Shouyou to land. You know he has problems with that.” He saw the two of them preparing to object, but he cut them off before the words could leave their throats. “No complaining. No independent actions. You promised me!” Now he had their full attention. They weren't looking at their enemies anymore. They were looking at him with stubborn, helpless and betrayed eyes. They didn't want to leave him. They wanted to fight at his side.

But they had promised him. Noya knew they would keep their promise and act according to his orders. 

He smiled grimly at them. “You know the way. We might be a bit lost now, but if you keep going north, you should arrive there eventually. Use your magic to find the way. When you are there, ask for Suga. Or Azumane. Both of them will be able to help you. Don't go to the Royal Family without one of them. Got it?”

They hesitated. Noya saw Tobio clench his fists, his face twisted into a stubborn scowl. He tensed when he felt the movement in the air as Tobio called his magic, preparing to attack despite his promise. Noya glanced warily at Shouyou, expecting to see him with a similar stance. But instead, Shouyou stared at him with a worried gaze, his arms hanging weakly at his side. Noya’s smile softened.

“Shouyou.” The boy flinched and Noya felt bad for doing this to him, but he had no other choice. “Shouyou, please. Get Tobio out of here. There is no need to worry about me. I’ll buy you guys all the time I can and then I’ll join you as soon as possible. I promise.” Shouyou quirked up at that, his eyes filled with hope and a deep desire to believe in him, despite the doubt that made his shoulders tense.  
Tobio didn’t look completely convinced either. “Tobio, please. I’ve been serving your family for many many years. Please let me protect you now as well. Let me do now what I failed to do at the manor.” Both of they boys winced, before they nodded in understanding. Noya breathed a relieved sigh. Now he wouldn’t have to worry about them anymore.

“Prepare yourselves. I'll attack them and you use that moment to escape.” They nodded again and he forced a bright and happy smile onto his face. “Good! In that case... NOW!“ As soon as the words had left his mouth, bright big flames engulfed is hands and legs. He pushed himself off the ground, flew with high-speed through the gap between Tobio and Shouyou without hurting them, and attacked their enemies without further hesitation. He passed the point where the wind wall had been and went straight for the blonde guy.

He kicked himself off the ground, twisted in the air to hit him with his burning feet while sending a wave of blazing fire from his fists towards the red-head. The red-head dodged by bending backwards and when Noya turned his head, he barely managed to land on his hands and feet, sliding over the sandy ground as he found no real grip. Apparently the other one had dodged as well.

As soon as he stopped sliding, he pushed himself off again, sending wave after wave of fire at his two enemies, closing in as far as he could to get a hit in with his leg or a fist. The trees at the borderline caught fire and soon everything around them was illuminated by flickering orange lights. Noya took strength out of the flames and used them to attack not just from the front, but also from behind them. Soon they were surrounded by a wall of flames. Meanwhile his enemies were too busy dodging the flames and his close combat attacks to fight back themselves.

He used the time their dodging gave him and turned around to where Tobio and Shouyou stood just moments ago. “GO! NOW!” But when he tried to find them through the smoke and flames, they weren't there. He looked up, desperately searching the sky through thick clouds of black smoke, hoping they really kept true to their promise and escaped. When he found them, he let go of a huge squall of breath. They were already so far gone that he was barely able to see them anymore. A relieved smile spread on his face. Now he only had to make sure his two opponents couldn't follow them anymore.

“Oooohhhh! So THAT was your plan!” Noya's smile fell as sudden as it had appeared. He turned towards the other two with a serious gaze and a grimly tensed mouth. “Fighting us all on your own while the two babies run off. How cliché!”

“Yeah, yeah! I had expected something more ... let's say, C-R-E-A-T-I-V-E!” The blonde one let go of a big sigh. Noya furrowed his brows. Something was wrong. Just a moment ago the two of them had their hands full with running around and dodging the flames. Now they stood amidst the blazing walls without a care in the world, a loop-sided smile on both of their faces. “I cannot believe we are risking punishment for something like THIS! Seriously, how uncool is that?!” The blonde one kept arguing while indicating to the burning wall without sending so much as a glance towards Noya.

“Yeah! And we weren't even supposed to kill the black-haired one. Maybe we should have captured him before we fought this one?” The red-haired one added with one hand at his chin.

“Aaahhhh, maybe we truly should have done that! What a bother. Now we have to follow them all the way up to the mountains~!” The other ruffled his hair in irritation, before turning to the mountains with a huge exhilerated sigh. The lilt in his voice told Noya he wasn't as displeased as he tried to act.

Noya scowled darkly. He didn't like the way those two were talking. Like all of this was just a game. Something to pass time. They didn't even take him serious.

But the worst of it was that Noya almost agreed with them. He could feel the magic building up within the other two to a terrifyingly intensity. Cold sweat ran down his spine. This was no ordinary magic. It wasn't the type of magic Noya or Shouyou used. No. It was more similar to Tobio's royal magic. But Tobio was still inexperienced. He barely had any real combat experience nor could he use any of his two elements to their full capability. No one had thought he would need it at his age.

But their magic was different. It felt ... it was intense. He couldn't describe it in any other way. It was strong and thick and had a feeling to it Noya had only felt from one other person in his life: Tobio's father, the head of the Royal Kageyama Family.  
It was the feeling of ancient, polished magic.

“You know~ All of this is your fault. You made us think you had some really awesome plan or some hidden ability after you could get back to your feet despite taking a full load of Yuuji's lightning head on. But look at you! You're nothing more than a simple fire mage! How boring.” Noya gritted his teeth, biting back an insult, as the red-head pointed one of his fingers towards him. A moment later all of the flames around them left their sources, leaving only black coal, burnt plants and ash behind, and flew right towards Noya. He tried to take a step back, tried to get into a better position to take the flames on and redirect them, but he couldn't move his legs. He quickly glanced downwards and froze in shock. When did they freeze his legs?!

He recovered quickly enough to look back up to see the mass of flames double in a way he had never seen before. If this situation wouldn't have been so serious he would've been amazed by it. Instead he send a powerful surge of fire into his feet, broke the ice in a small explosion and jumped out of the way just in time before the flames hit him.

He rolled himself off and just got back to his feet when his gaze fell onto a part of his clothes that was burning. He grabbed it without a second thought and used his magic to get it under control and extinguish it. Instead of dying down though, it suddenly got bigger and lashed out at him. Noya felt a burning heat on his face and threw himself onto the ground without a second thought, rolling in the dry dirt to extinguish the flames.

He was still rolling over the ground when a cold, wet feeling joined the sand and left mud on his clothes. Water. One of the two was a water mage. They can use TWO elements?! Terrifying horror pierced his stomach like an ice-cold knife when the true meaning behind their strength revealed itself to him. He had to get away from here, had to warn somebody! These people were DANGEROUS! Someone had to stop them!

He tried to get back up in a hurry, desperately scrambling to his feet, but it was already to late. He felt his clothes gaining more and more weight as they got soaked, restricting his movements. Arms of streaming water assaulted him, held tight onto his waist and legs, dragging him back to the ground, preventing him from getting away as fast as he wished he could. Small streams of water slowly crawled his body up towards his face. Dread filled him as he realized what would happen to him when they were to reach it. He paled and his heart beat at a crazy speed that made him feel lightheaded. He put more strength into his legs, desperately trying to get away from the puddle of water spread on the ground. Then his movements stopped completely as the water froze, freezing his legs back to the ground.

He tried to use his fire to melt it, but the more ice he melted, the more water climbed his body. When the first small streams entered his mouth he tried to spit them out. Since they were magical though that obviously didn't work. He coughed violently when he felt the first drops entering his windpipe. He desperately reached for fire magic, increase his own body heat, setting himself aflame to vaporize the water. But whatever he tried it was in vain. The more water he vaporized with his flames, the more water closed in from the outside, covering and extinguishing every single flame he produced. It wasn't better for the water in his body. The more water he vaporized through body heat, the more steam he created that was stuck in his throat. He coughed and choked, almost suffocated on the steam alone.

The water just kept coming.

He closed his eyes when his sight turned blurry from the water covering his eyes. Dark dots obscured his vision from the sudden temperature change, as the water kept turning to ice until he could neither move nor feel his arms and legs, cooling his overheated body down to minus degrees. A bubble of water covered his mouth and nose. He desperately tried to suck in air, but everything he got was water. He tried to put his hands to his mouth, wanted to cover it, wanted to prevent more water from entering. The irresponsible feeling of wanting to scratch on his throat till he drew blood, till he had opened another slit to let the water out, grew in the centre of his body, but when he tried to raise his arms he failed. They were still frozen at his side. Darkness loomed at the edges of his sight, visible despite his eyes being closed. He forced himself not to suck in even more water, desperately trying to keep his consciousness.

“That's not fair Satori! This way you'll have all the fun by yourself and I'll look like the guy who endangered our mission by being too lazy.” A low chuckle reached Noya's barely-still-there consciousness.

“Fine. Then you finish him off. But don't play with him too long. We have to follow the other two.”

A snort answered him and Noya was almost sure he could hear a grin in the other's, Yuuji's, voice. “Sure.” Then another wave of pain swept over Noya. Searing heat ran through his body, turning his body temperature upside down once more, and he opened his mouth in a breathless, by the water covered, scream. He lost all orientation, lost the feel for whether he was standing or lying, still frozen in place or lying in a puddle of Ice-water. The only thing that still existed for him was the heat that was turning his insides to ashes.

Then his vision turned black.

 

 

His two opponents watched for a while how his body twitched and thrashed under the still lingering electricity. When it stopped they turned to look at each other.

“Sooo... What now?”

“What do you mean what now?! We have to follow the other two of course!” The red-head answered with raised eye-brows. The look on his face spoke volumes.

“But Satori! They are gone!” His expression a mix of anger,helplessness and panic, his fists clenched by his side.

“I know that they are gone! That's why we have to find them, Idiot!” Satori at the other hand was clearly angry, with both of his hands on his hip.

“Yeah, but do you know where they went?! Have you SEEN where they ran off to?” Silence answered him. Yuuji shot a paniced look at his partner. “...See?!”

“Daaamn! How are we supposed to explain that?” Satori exclaimed and smacked a hand against his forehead.

“But we cannot just run somewhere hoping to stumble upon them either!” Another silence engulfed them. Then the red-head turned to the smaller man lying on the ground.

“... You think he's still alive?” Hope and fear tinged his voice in a slightly higher tone than usual as he crouched down to search their victim for a pulse.

“You wish he was!” Yuuji’s face was caught in-between a smug grin and tired resignation.

“Yeah, I truly wish he was. Maybe we could have gotten their destination out of him... Just for clarification: If someone asks, it was you who killed him.”

“SATORI! DON'T YOU DARE PUT ALL THE BLAME ON ME!” Satori just clicked his tongue and turned away. “SATORI!!!”

“Anyway, we need to get rid of this guy. If no one finds out what happened here then we can still say we never found them in the first place.”

“... But wouldn't that mean we would have to lie to the leader?” Doubt and hesitation were clearly written all over Yuuji's face. But there was also hope. Hope that Satori's idea would work out and they could get out of this without any major punishment. Satori grinned smugly when he recognized the hope in the other's eyes.

“Only if the leader asks us directly. Maybe we are lucky and can get around it somehow? Come on! Help me to throw him off the cliff so that we can finally go back. It's been a while, and I cannot wait to see Kenjiro~!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry.
> 
>  
> 
> Also, who saw what I did there at the end?

**Author's Note:**

> The second part is already finished. I'll upload it tomorrow.
> 
> Advice or criticism is also always appreciated!


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